Years and Years
by elleigator
Summary: What happens after Chloe gets in the car with Evan? My take on last week's episode. Dom and Chloe solidarity. Multi chapter.
1. Chapter 1

"You've had years of chances."

From the second that she closes the car door, she knows something is wrong, but she can't quite put her finger on it. She listens to Evan's voice, the words flying straight over her head, and she can't tell if it's the buzzing of the radio or her own thoughts that are drowning him out. And then suddenly, it comes to her.

"Evan, where are we going? You can't drive home after you've had a drink." She expects him to go 'oh, damn, you're right', or perhaps agree and take her straight home, but he does neither. He keeps his eyes fixed on the road, his lips pressed thin and in a steely sort of grimace.

"Evan?" Her voice isn't upset, just exhausted and confused. She can't deal with him, with them, right now. She wants a cup of tea and ten hours of sleep, not Evan. And drinking only makes her worse. She barely notices as they pull up at his house, her head too numb to concentrate. She feels like she did that one time she smoked weed, her head blurry and full of fuzz.

She hears Evan stop the car and open the door, watches him walk around to the passenger side and offer her his hand. She shakes her head, climbing out of the car herself and stumbling after him to his door. She watches him fumble with the key and the lock, shivering in the bitter night chill, her arms wrapped around herself.

"What do you want to drink?" He asks as they enter the house, throwing his keys in the bowl.

"What's the strongest thing you have?"

—

She's been at Evan's for a few hours now, drinking and crying and drinking and crying on repeat. Now they're both sat on the couch, Chloe trying to retain her tears and Evan watching her.

He leans over on the sofa and presses a gentle kiss on her cheek. She looks up in staggered surprise, the alcohol having already lowered her reflexes, making her slow. She doesn't react at all, just stares at him, and he interprets this as the go ahead. He edges closer towards her, pressing more kisses on her face, down to her mouth. She doesn't respond, her jaw slack, barely processing what was going on.

"Evan, get off." She finally finds the words, forcing them out of her mouth like poison, but he captures her mouth again before she can protest any further. She moves her hand up to his face to bat him away gently, just needing to let him know that she doesn't want this. They're both drunk, she thinks, neither of them do.

"Evan, stop." She tries to grab his hand with her own, tries to remove it herself, but this only makes him dig his fingers into her neck even more. He moves another hand to her knee, asserting his dominance, and she places her own over his.

"Evan, no. Not tonight. Not ever. I've had the worst day, I don't want to make any more mistakes." Chloe breaks away from his kiss, turning her head to stare at his living room.

"Chloe, I'll make you feel better. I always do. I'm the only one you can trust now, remember?" His voice is calm but it stirs the sick feeling inside her. She looks up to meet his eyes, and then they glaze over as she sits backwards on the sofa. He takes this as permission to continue.

By the time she's staggering out of the house, it's gone eleven. She hurts, all over, her head and her body. But, just before she shuts the back door, she glances at the table and realises- Evan's glass is still full.

Dom is sitting on the sofa when he gets the call. He's got a curry in the microwave, Love Island on the telly, and apart from his family being uprooted and his childhood destroyed, life is good. So when his phone starts buzzing, he sighs in disappointment until he sees the caller ID. Chloe. He picks it up immediately, holding the phone to his ear with his shoulder as he pierces the plastic on the curry with a fork. All he can hear down the phone are shaky breaths and pounding feet, and what sounds like heavy panting.

"Chloe?" He asks, confused. He can hear her on the other side of the line, and she sounds as if she's been running.

"Can you pick me up?" Her voice is scared, and timid. She lets out a small sob after she speaks, clutching her hand to her mouth and leaning against a lamppost.

"Where are you?" Dom asks, already walking to the door of his flat. Just as he's slipping on a pair of trainers, she answers.

"Corner of Smith street." She sounds unsure, Dom notes.

"Should I call your Mum?" He questions, climbing into his own car.

"No." Chloe's answer takes a while, and there's a hesitant pause as if she can't decide what to say.

"I won't be long. Stay where you are, I'm on my way."

Revving the engine, the pavement in front of him is flooded with light and he pulls out of the drive. He had never liked driving in the dark, but desperate times call for desperate measures. It took him a little over ten minutes to get across town and find Smith Street, which turned out to be a row of modest semis. He drove down the road slowly, checking for the blonde figure he knew he would recognise. Finally, he sees her leaning against a lamppost at the end of the street, shivering.

"Chloe?" She stumbled towards the car. Her shirt was ripped down the front, and she had her thin jacket wrapped tightly around her shoulders. She was clutching it like she was about to scream, and Dom could see that she already had tears streaming down her face. The left side of her face had a sort of mottled colouring to it, as if it was starting to bruise, and there were visible hickeys on her neck..

"Chloe, what happened? Christ, it's cold. Get in the car, I've got you." Dom climbs out of the car, offering her a supportive arm. He quickly removes his long brown coat and wraps it around his sister's shivering figure. Her eyes are glazed over with tears and she doesn't move. Slowly, she looks upwards to meet his eyes, and takes a few steps forward until she leans her head against his chest and lets the tears fall. Within seconds, she's a shaking, heaving wreck, and Dom has his arms wrapped tightly around her, rubbing circles on her back and whispering comfortingly in her ear.

"Do you want to go home, or come back to mine? Or the hospital?" Dom enquires softly, murmuring into her hair.

"Yours. Don't leave me." Chloe wheezes under her breath as Dom releases her from his hug, shivering in the sharp breeze as Chloe has his coat. Their eyes locked for a few seconds, in the floodlights still left on from Doms car.

"I've got you, alright? I promise." Dom tried to reassure her gently. He supports Chloe under the arms as she half-climbs, half-falls into the small car. He shuts the door as quietly as he can and walks quickly around to his side of the car, clambering in with experienced ease and jamming the key in the ignition.


	2. Chapter 2

By the time Dom has finished getting Chloe into the car in one piece, it's past midnight. The roads are abandoned and the car ride home is silent, save for a steady stream of sniffles from Chloe. She accepts Dom's arm as he leads her into his flat, thanking his past self for having the sense to clean and vacuum the day before. He guides her to the sofa, pushing aside blankets and kneeling in front of her, taking her hands in her lap.

"Chloe, listen to me. Have you been drinking?" She meets Dom's eyes and gives a wobbly nod.

"Have you taken anything?" His voice is calm and non-judgemental, which she appreciates. She shakes her head, but closes her eyes as if she is trying to figure out how to say something.

"Feels like I have." She slurs her words in the end.

Dom looks up at Chloe properly. He moves her hands up to her neck, checking over the bites.

"Can I have a look at your injuries?" Dom asks quietly. He wasn't sure what Chloe would do, if she would even reply. To his surprise, though, Chloe nods and Dom stands up. Helping her out of the coat, Chloe sits in her torn shirt, on Dom's sofa, trembling. She flinches away at Dom's first touch but as she got used to it, she calmed slightly. Dom traces his fingers over the bruise on the left side of her face.

"Chloe, who did this?"

Chloe shakes her head. Dom frowns slightly- he's not sure how far he should push this. He gets distracted, however, when she winces and swears under her breath.

"Are you in pain? Where does it hurt?" He sounds so concerned, it's breaking Chloe's heart. She motions to her stomach, unable to speak through the wave of cramps and nausea.

"Do you want paracetamol?" He offers.

"Best not. Probably won't react well with whatever's in my system already." Dom nods understandingly, looking up at her face. There are still tears trickling down her cheeks and she's staring at the opposite wall numbly.

"Do you need a hug?" He quirks his head to the side and she finally looks down at him. She stares for a few seconds, seemingly surprised by his offer, but as she feels her lip start to tremble again, she nods in acceptance. He uses the coffee table as support when standing up from the floor, before sitting back down on the sofa and letting her collapse into his arms. She wraps her arms under his, her soft hair brushing his cheek and her chest starting to shake. He reaches up to stroke her hair comfortingly.

"Are you sure you don't want me to call your mum?" He whispers into her neck.

"Our mum. Give it a while. She'll go mental, I can't deal with that yet." Chloe pulls away slightly, still remaining in Dom's arms but leaning against the sofa instead.

"You going to tell me what happened?"

"I can't remember much. I finished my shift, I got in the car with Evan. He said we could go for drinks, but he took me back to his house. We drank a lot, and then he kissed me. I told him to get off. And I can't remember anything after that. We didn't have sex, I don't think. I remember him feeling me up. Just touching, though." Chloe shakes her head in disgust.

"Were you okay with it?" This was the first thing that came into his head. She looks away from him, concentrating on the corner of a mirror on the opposite wall.

"Chloe? Was what happened consensual?" Dom asks again, the concern rife in his voice.

"Can't remember. Don't tell Mum, please." Chloe sighs.

"I won't do anything until you want me to." Dom reaches out to rub her arm reassuringly.

"Do you have something I could wear?" She says nervously, twisting her hands around the bottom of her sleeves, as if she wants to get out of the shirt.

"Course. Shower is just through there. You have my bed. Only, Chloe," Dom places a gentle hand on her arm and she turns around.

"If he did do anything, are you sure you don't want to go to the hospital? They can collect evidence in case you ever wanted to take this further."

"It was just touching. He didn't get that far. I kicked him and ran."

Dom nodded, and let out a small grimace.

"Just... shout if you need anything. I'll go grab clothes now." Chloe nods in thanks, and makes her way to the bathroom. Dom walks to his spare room, to try and find any clothes Zosia may have donated to his growing pile of junk. Retrieving a slightly dodgy looking pair of pyjama shorts and an oversized band shirt from Dom's edgy teenage years, he knocks on the door of the bathroom.

"Chloe, you decent?"

"Yep," She calls out, cracking open the door. She's got a towel around her but Dom can see the bruise forming on her collarbone.

"Thanks." She nods in gratitude.

—

It was almost half an hour later when Chloe emerged from the bathroom, wearing the selection of attire Dom had picked out. She was wringing her hair out with the towel, and she walked over to the sofa where Dom was sitting, leaning against the door frame.

"Hey." She said with a small smile.

"Hey." He replied.

"Feeling any better?" He asks, looking up questioningly.

"I think the alcohol is starting to wear off. Everything hurts."

"Are you sure you don't want an ibuprofen?" Chloe shook her head firmly.

"Do you want to talk about what happened?" Dom motioned for Chloe to sit next to him. She did, but instead leans her back against his chest, tipping her head back until it falls onto his shoulder. He is surprised by her desire for intimacy but he reciprocates immediately, taking a strand of her hair and twirling it around his finger.

"It all got out of control so quickly." Her voice was quiet, and he doesn't reply, but waited for her to explain.

"One minute we were just drinking, just talking, and then he was trying to kiss me. I told him to get off, that I didn't want to. He sort of- He put his hand on my leg, and it's left a mark." She rolled the shorts up slightly, revealing a hand shaped bruise.

"He started trying to get down my jeans, and he was properly holding me down. He's bruised my arms, too." Dom remains silent.

"I remember crying, and shouting for him to get off, but he kept saying that I wanted it to happen. But I didn't."

"After he was done feeling me up, he was distracted, trying to undo his belt, so I kneed him and ran. And on the way out, I noticed that he hadn't actually had anything to drink."

Dom didn't say anything, just held her. He watched her eyes fill up with tears as she finally processed what had happened, and he turned her towards him in order to pull her closer. She placed her hand on his chest and started to shake.

He wasn't quite sure what to do. He'd had girls cry to him before, of course- Zosia was emotional to say the least. But there was something different about seeing his own sister so broken, clutching at his jumper, hot tears streaming from her eyes onto his neck. All he could do was hold her tightly, close to himself, hoping that this would be some comfort.

"I've got you now. You're safe." He tried to reassure her, stroking her hair and letting her grab his jumper. They remained intertwined until she fell asleep, tears still trickling down her cheeks. As her breathing evened out and she started to slumber, he unhooked an arm and reached across the sofa for his phone. With Chloe still sleeping on his chest, he had to be quiet about this. Quickly unlocking his phone, he dialled Ange and pressed it to his ear with his shoulder.

"Dominic?" She picked up on the second ring.

"Hi. I've got Chloe." He said, his words coming out in a jumble.

"What? Is she okay? I thought she was with Evan? What's happened?" Ange fired questions at him so quickly he thought he might have to list them down.

"She's fine, ish. She called me about two hours ago and asked me to pick her up from the other side of town. I did, obviously, and she's safe now, she's asleep. She told me not to call you but I thought you'd want to know she's okay." Dom said, careful not to wake the sleeping Chloe who was now gently pawing at his leg.

"Yeah. Thanks. What do you mean, fine-ish? What's going on?" The panic was rising in Ange's voice.

"I don't know if she'd be happy with me telling you like this. She might want to do it herself." Dom tried to explain, looking down at the peaceful girl in his arms.

"Dominic, what's happened? Is this to do with Evan?"

"Look, I'll tell her to give you a call tomorrow. She's fine, though. Seriously. Night." Dom tried to end the call quickly, afraid he was going to give too much away. He didn't want to betray Chloe's trust.

"Night. Dominic?", Ange asked again. "Thanks, for this. For picking her up. You didn't have to."

"It's fine. She's my little sister, it's the least I can do." Dom smiled, even though Ange couldn't see it.

"Night."


	3. Chapter 3

When Chloe's eyes finally flutter open the next morning, Dom is tracing circles on the back of her hand. He is sat on the sofa with his legs swung up, and she is sprawled on top of them, head resting on his chest.

"Have you been awake all night?" Chloe mumbles, stretching her neck back and letting out a mewl. Dom looks down at her through half closed eyes, shaking his head no.

"I woke up just before you did." He explains. Chloe winces as he reaches over and flicks the table lamp on, flooding the room in light.

"Hangover?" He asks, a gentle teasing sound in his voice. Chloe shoots him a look that is straight out of hell, a glare to rival Jac Naylor's. Dom snickers, moving his hand to brush her hair out of her face as she tries to sit up.

"I'm supposed to be working today. I'll call in now. Oh God, what am I supposed to tell Mum-" Chloe starts, before she is cut off by Dom.

"About that." He says, an ominous tone to his voice.

"You didn't-" Anger flares up in Chloe's eyes, and she jerks her head from his chest.

"I just called her. Told her you were safe, I didn't say anything else. You know I wouldn't." Dom reassures her. Chloe looks as if she is about to retaliate, but stops herself.

"Probably for the best. She might have combusted in her bed if you hadn't." Chloe lowers her head back down slowly, agreeing with him.

"She sounded worried." Dom comments, resuming his stroking of Chloe's hair.

"She never stops. When I had sleepovers as a teenager, she would stay up all night, just in case I needed her to pick me up. That's just who she is. Big worrier." Chloe laughs bitterly.

"She means well." Dom tried to placate her, tipping his head to the side.

"I know." She agrees.

"What are you going to say? When you phone in, I mean?" Dom questions.

"I'm ill." Chloe says simply, as if it was obvious. There's a long pause before her next question.

"Do you think he'll be there?" There's almost a hint of fear in her voice, and even though Dom knows what she means, he double checks.

"Who will be where?"

"Evan. Do you think he'll go to work?" Chloe explains.

"Christ knows. Maybe. What are you going to do about him?" Dom asks, trying to be comforting with his hair stroking.

"I don't know." Chloe shook her head gently.

"Do you want to call the police?" He inquires.

"I don't know." Chloe shrugs.

"Do you want to get in touch with HR, they might be able to-" Dom starts, before Chloe snaps at him.

"I don't know, Dom. Stop going on!"

"Sorry." He sounds apologetic, ashamed, even.

"No, I'm sorry. I'm just confused. Bit of a mess." She apologises, running her hands through her hair frantically and letting out a bitter laugh.

"It's okay." Dom smiles sympathetically.

"I'll call now. Mum's not on shift until later, hopefully Sacha picks up." Chloe nods to herself, forming her plan.

"Alright. Let me get up, I'll go and put the kettle on." Dom laughs, indicating Chloe, who is laying on top of him, trapping him.

"Oh yeah, sorry. Whose legs are whose?" Chloe sniggers, sitting up and shuffling off Dom, untangling their limbs.

Dom laughed under his breath as he walked into the kitchen. The last 24 hours had been such a rollercoaster, but he was relieved to finally be getting somewhere with Chloe, even if it had to be under these circumstances. He could hear her sitting back down and the dial tone of her phone as she called into work.

"Hello?" She answered. Dom heard the phone drop and clatter onto the wooden floor. He quickly back-pedalled into the living room, finding Chloe bent over supporting herself on the sofa, hyperventilating.

"Chloe, I'm here. What's going on?" Dom jogged over to her, crouching on the floor and taking her by the shoulders.

"It was him." She managed to choke out.

"Evan?" Chloe nods in reply.

"Okay. I'm here now, I'm here. It'll be alright, I've got you. Oh, Chloe." Dom collected her into his arms, leading her back towards the sofa.

"Get off me!" Chloe flinched out of Dom's grasp, backing into the corner of the room like a scared animal.

"I'm sorry, I didn't think. Chloe, please. Try and slow your breathing down."

"Chloe, I'm calling Mum." Dom gave up trying to placate her, and pulled his phone out of his back pocket. Speed dialling Ange, he pressed the phone to his ear.

"Ange?" He asked urgently.

"Is everything okay?" She picked up on the worry in his voice immediately.

"Can you come round, please? Chloe's in a state, I don't know what to do." Dom ran a hand through his hair in stress.

"I'm on my way, what's happened?" Dom could hear Ange stand and slam a door on the other end of the line.

"She tried to phone in sick to work, Evan picked up the phone. I think she's having a panic attack, she won't let me anywhere near her." Dom explained.

"Can you give her the phone?" Ange asked, starting her car. It was only a five minute drive to Dom's flat, even with early morning traffic. Dom approached Chloe slowly, proffering the phone and mouthing 'It's Mum!'. Chloe accepted the phone with trembling hands, pressing it to her ear like she didn't know how to hold it.

"Chloe?", Ange said, trying to catch her attention over the phone. "It's Mum."

"Sweetheart?" Ange repeated, but decided she wasn't going to get words out of Chloe in this state.

"Darling, I'm on my way. I won't be long. Deep breaths, okay? You're going to be fine." Dom could see that Ange's voice calmed her slightly. However, as soon as she stopped talking, Chloe started shaking again and bent over, clutching her chest and dropping the phone. Dom winced as it hit the ground but decided there were more important things, like his sister.

"Chlo?", Dom started, unsure how Chloe felt about name shortening. "Is it okay for me to touch you?"

She looked up slowly and unsurely, still processing the words, but she nodded yes. He moved towards her, taking her hy the elbows and gently pulled her to the floor, where she crumpled into his side and they leant against the sofa, silently, until Dom heard the sound of the door handle.

"It's open!" He shouted, trying not to startle Chloe.

"We're in here." He said, slightly quieter, as he heard the door open and close.

Ange walked in on quite a sweet scene, really, if you forgave the circumstances. The two were sat on the floor, leant against the bottom of the sofa. Chloe had her knees drawn up to her chest and she was huddling into Dom, her head on his shoulder and her legs leaning over his. He had an arm wrapped around her shoulders and she seemed much calmer than she sounded on the phone.

"Hey."

—

Ange sat on the armchair, surveying her two children. They were sat on the sofa together, the likeness between them striking. Chloe was rubbing her eyes, trying to erase her crying, and Dom had an arm around her waist. She was pulled close to him, their friendship apparent.

"So." She stated, feeling very much like a police interviewer.

"What the hell happened last night?" She asked in her Scottish drawl. Dom remained silent, glancing at Chloe for permission to answer. She stopped him, taking his hand in her smaller one and placing it on her knee, squeezing gently.

"I was going to go to a bar with Evan, but he took me back to his house instead." Chloe began, looking to Dom for encouragement.

"I don't know what he thought we were going to do that night. He made it very clear he wanted one thing, and I tried to make it clear that I didn't."

"What do you mean?" Ange's voice was suddenly alert, and almost angry. Dom glanced up quickly, and she was sat on the edge of her chair, as if debating whether or not to come over and hug Chloe.

"He tried, Mum. I kicked him and ran." Chloe's voice cracked and she glanced at the floor.

"Are you okay? Did he hurt you?" Ange's voice was low, as if she was trying very hard to suppress some emotions.

"Just bruises and scrapes, really. I'm fine, Mum." Chloe tried to reassure her.

"Where?" Ange persisted, her voice wobbling.

"Mum, please." Chloe dismissed her.

"Where?" Ange's voice was low and Dom had never seen her like this before.

"Here," Chloe said, pulling the front of her shirt down to reveal a darkened purple bruise along her collarbone. "Here", she thrusted her forearms at her mother, which both had clear handprints branded on them, "And on my legs." Chloe made no move to show Ange these ones.

"Where on your legs?" Ange looked and sounded very distressed, her voice shaking with anger but still scared. Chloe rolled her eyes slightly, pulling the pyjama shorts up a little to show her mother the handprints in between her thighs. There were fingerprints on her knee, too, that she had shown Dom earlier, but he didn't know about the ones higher up.

"You didn't tell me about them." Dom said, not trying to sound accusing, but just shocked.

"I don't need to tell either of you anything." Chloe shook her head, pulling the leg of her shorts back down quickly.

"Sorry. I didn't mean it like that." Dom waved his hand apologetically.

"I know." Chloe sighed, looking away. Sensing that they needed to speak alone, Dom made his excuses.

"I'm just going to go and put the kettle on. Tea, Ange?" He asked, on his way our of the door already.

"Please." She nodded. As soon as he had left the room, her gaze rested again on her daughter, sitting on the sofa across from her. Unable to hold herself back any longer, Ange got up and sat down tentatively next to her. Chloe looked up at her slowly, through swollen and bloodshot eyes.

"Come here." Ange couldn't resist her urge to comfort her daughter any longer. She pulled her into a tight hug, Chloe resting her head on Ange's shoulder, but Ange could tell she was holding back.

"You don't have to be strong for me, you know that. I'm your Mum." Ange murmured into her limp hair. Finally, something inside Chloe broke and she let it go, her chest silently shaking, tears starting to roll down her cheeks and onto her mother's shoulder.

"I've got you. I'm here now, it's going to be okay." Ange rocked Chloe slowly until her sobs subsided, when she took her by the arms and pulled them apart gently.

"What do you need me to do?" Ange asked, her voice cracking.

"What do you mean?" Reaching up to rub tears from her face, Chloe broke eye contact.

"You have control over this, Chloe. Do you want to go to the police?" And then Chloe realised. Her mother was trying to give her everything that she hadn't had- comfort, control. She realised how hard this must be for Ange, to sit and watch something like this.

"I'm trying to decide." Chloe said in a small voice.

"That's okay. Take all the time you need. I'll just go and help Dom bring the tea in. Do you want him here, or should I tell him to leave? Do you want me here?"

"Considering we're sat in his flat, it would be pretty rude to ask him to get out. And I do. Want him here, I mean. And of course I need you, you're my Mum." Chloe affirmed.

Ange nodded in response. She stood up, walking into the kitchen and smiling at Dom. She took one of the tea mugs and they walked out together, rejoining Chloe. This time, Ange sat next to her and Dom perched himself on the armchair opposite.

"I think I need to go to the police." Chloe said, breaking the comfortable silence.

"I can call them now, if you like." Dom volunteered. Chloe nodded, a grim but thankful smile on her face. As he stood up to walk into the kitchen with his phone, she caught his sleeve with her hand, Ange watching on.

"Dom? Thanks." She said. He nodded back.

She could faintly hear Dom murmuring on his phone in the next room, and glanced over to her mother. Her eyes were glazed, her expression sad but her jaw fixed. Words filtered through the open door to the living room- "Sexual assault", "Yeah, she knows him," and finally "Thanks. See you soon."

"They're on their way." Dom said as he came back into the room, rubbing his wrists with alternating hands. Ange looked up and gave him a grim sort of smile- the kind that doctors flash around comatose patients. Chloe wound her arm around her mother's, squeezing her hand. Ange stroked her thumb over the back of Chloe's, gently letting her know she felt it.

"They're going to want your clothes from last night. Do you still have them?" Ange asked quietly. Chloe looked up at Dom, who was clearly not paying attention, distracted by his thoughts.

"Dom?"

"Hm? Oh, yes. I'll go get them now, they're in a plastic bag in the kitchen."

Chloe gulped and nodded. Dom left the room and returned with a small 5p tesco bag that was tied into a knot at the top. He placed it on the coffee table next to them and then joined both of them on the sofa, Chloe in the middle, and Ange and Dom on either side.

They sat in the silence quite comfortably, each with completely different thoughts in their minds. The quiet wasn't awkward, but safe and secure, until a sharp knock at the door broke it.


	4. Chapter 4

The knock vibrated around the small apartment, making Chloe jump. Ange glanced at her, seeing her face even paler than it normally was, her legs shaking.

"I'll get it." Dom said, standing up and walking into the hall. Chloe looked up suddenly, seeking her mother's eyes, and found them.

"I'm here," Ange reassured her. "And Dominic's here too. You don't have to answer anything you don't want to." Chloe could only bite her lip anxiously and nod, hearing several pairs of footsteps on the wood-tiled floor.

She was still holding her mother's hand when they entered the room- her brother, and two police officers. They must be young, she thought, not looking much older than herself. One had long brown hair and one had a pixie cut, and both had removed their hats when they came in.

"Hello, Chloe. I'm Sarah, and this is Em. We're police officers from Holby Central. Your brother called us regarding an assault last night. Are you okay to talk to us?"

"Yes."

"Is this your mother?" The blonde lady gestured towards Ange, who nodded in confirmation.

"So. We can stop whenever you like, just let us know. You don't have to take this any further if you don't want to, but by doing this it means that you have evidence to rely on in court."

Chloe nodded.

"Can you tell us any previous knowledge you have of the man in question?" Em asked, taking out her notepad and poising her pen on the paper.

"We used to date. I broke up with him a few weeks ago, he didn't take it well. He asked me out for a drink last night, and I dont know. I guess I was in a bad place anyway, and I felt sorry for him, so I said yes." Chloe took a deep breath before continuing.

"But he didn't take me to a bar. We went back to his house. He kept giving me drinks, but he never had any alcohol himself. I was drunk by the end of the night, and then he tried to kiss me. I pushed him off, but he wouldn't get off me. He was holding me down, he's strong." Finally, her voice cracked and Chloe let out a sob. Ange couldn't help herself and reached out to pull Chloe closer to herself, rubbing her arm in comfort.

"It's okay. We can stop if you need a break." Em said, giving Chloe a gentle smile.

"No, no. If I don't get it out now, I never will." Chloe waved her hands in dismissal, and took a deep breath and exhaling slowly.

"He tried to get down my jeans. Well, he did, I guess. And then when he was trying to unzip his trousers, I kicked him and ran." She leant into her Mum, taking Ange's hand in her own. She linked their fingers together like she did when she was a child, running her fingers over her Mum's chipped nail polish. Ange squeezed her hand back, letting her know she was there before Em continued her questioning.

"Get down your jeans?" She asked questioningly.

"You know." Chloe motioned, making it clear she didn't want to expand any further.

"And what happened after you left?" Em realised that she wasnt going to get anywhere with that and moved the conversation on.

"I ran for a while. I didn't know my way around the area, especially not in the dark. I got to a street sign and I stopped. I called my- my brother and he came straight away." Chloe motioned to Dom.

"Would you, by any chance, still have the phone conversation saved?"

"Yeah, I have one of those apps that records conversations."

Dom brought out his phone, tapping a few times.

"This must be it."

"Are you okay listening to this, Chloe?"

Chloe nods.

Dom pressed the play button, and a static sound came into the room. There were shaky breaths and pounding feet, and what sounds like heavy panting.

"Chloe?" Dom's voice is confused.

"Can you pick me up?" Her voice is scared, and timid. She lets out a small sob after she speaks.

"Where are you?" Dom asks, and there are footsteps in the background.

"Corner of Smith street." Chloes voice is unsure.

"Should I call your Mum?" He questions.

"No." Chloe's answer takes a while, and there's a hesitant pause as if she can't decide what to say.

"I won't be long. Stay where you are, I'm on my way."

"Thanks. This will count as evidence that you were where you say you were."

"Chloe, has he ever done anything like this before?"

"Not like this, no."

"Okay. We're going to take your clothes back to the station and then we're going to try and chase any CCTV around the area, just in case anyone caught anything. We'll need to take some photos, too. Have you made your decision about taking this any further yet? You can come with us now, or drop in at any time today."

"Can I come later, please?" Chloe asked in a small voice.

"Of course." Em answered with a kind smile.

"Thank you, so much." Ange stood up as if she was going to shake their hands but just rubbed her wrists anxiously.

"It's fine, you're very welcome. We'll see you later." Sarah gave them a bracing smile, picked up her hat and walked to the doorway.

"I'll show you out." Dom jumped up, leading the two policewomen down the hallway. There was some murmuring, and Ange heard the door open and shut behind them.

"Was he in work?" Chloe's voice startled her. It was quiet but came out of nowhere.

"Chloe..." Ange trailed off. She didn't want to upset her even more.

"No. Tell me. Was he in work?" Chloe repeated; she needed to know.

"Yes." Ange answered finally.

"How? How can he just pretend like everything's okay? Like what he did was okay?" Questioned Chloe, shaking her head.

"I don't know." Ange shrugged. She felt useless; she wasn't able to give Chloe the answers she wanted.

"Was there nothing wrong with it? Am I overreacting, is this normal?" Chloe ran a hand through her hair, stressed.

"No. No, it's not normal." Ange tried to reassure her.

"Maybe he didn't realise. Maybe he didn't realise I didn't want to."

"Chloe, you told him no. He should have listened, and he didn't, and that's assault. He bruised you, sweetheart, he hurt you."

"He loves me."

"No, Chloe. He doesn't." Dom interrupted, making both of them look up.

"Look at yourself. This is not love." Dom leant forward, his voice cracking, and Ange felt tears well in her eyes. Chloe nodded numbly and sat back in her chair.

A few hours, and many tea refills later, the three were sat staring blankly at the television. Chloe was jogging her leg and Ange had been listlessly folding Dom's laundry, against his feeble protests that he'd do it later.

"Can we go now?" Chloe asked, her voice timid. Ange nodded in reply, climbing up from the floor and stretching her back.

"Shotgun." Chloe smiled faintly and Dom grinned back. The car ride was silent, each person consumed in their own thoughts until they pulled up outside the police station.

"I need to do this by myself. Can you wait?" Chloe was twisting her hands around her wrists nervously.

"Of course." Ange nodded and gave her an encouraging smile. She and Dom sat in the car and watched Chloe limp her way into the police station, pulling her coat tighter around herself.


End file.
